Ultimate Pre-Move Checklist – Plus Money Saving Tips

Congratulations on finding a new place to call home! You’ve officially completed the last fun part of the relocation process!

Moving is one of life’s most stressful events, especially if you’re not prepared. And the saying goes, “failure to prepare is preparing to fail”.

It’s easy to think that all you have to do is hire a moving company and they’ll take care of everything. While most movers provide full packing and moving services, no matter how “full service” a company is, there’s still much YOU have to do to prepare.

Failing to prepare movers could result in higher moving costs, lost or damaged items, and a not so happy you.

We’ve listed here some things to consider before moving and how to be prepared for your movers. We also have some money saving tips for before your move and how to save on moving costs.

Purge

For unwanted items, consider having a moving sale, donate to local organizations, or simply trash anything that cannot be reused or recycled by someone else.

Local moving companies charge by the hour and long distance movers charge by the weight of the goods. Either way, the more you have the more the move will cost.

Get Rid of Hazardous Items

This includes all flammables – paint, petrol, gas cylinders. Also, empty fuel from mowers, clippers, trimmers and so on.

Movers will not move these items and please don’t throw hazardous materials in the trash very last minute. Mother earth won’t be happy.

Acquire Packing Materials

If your movers don’t provide boxes, the best place to get packing materials is your local Home Depot or Lowe’s.

Pack Room by Room – Label Boxes

Pack each room separately and label each box with a brief description, is it fragile?, and what room does it belong to?

Pack According To Weight

Pack heavy items into small boxes and light items into large boxes. Be nice to the movers, don’t make them carry a 200 lb box full of books.

IMPORTANT – Pack and Move These Items YOURSELF

During the moving process, people (not just the movers) will be coming in and out of your home regularly. Please keep a good line on your valuables before things are misplaced and theft assumptions are made.

Utilities

Get Help

Enlist the help from friends and family by having a packing / going away party. Don’t forget the food and party favors!

Take advantage of the links I’ve provided in this post as they will save you time with searching for the resources you need.

If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish all of these in a week’s time. Like I said, failing to prepare in the weeks leading up to your move will make your life seem like its been chopped up, shaken up, thrown in the garbage disposal and flushed down the drain…we’ll leave it at that.